PAINT AND RUST REMOVAL
WHAT TYPE OF BLASTING MEDIA DOES AMERICAN STRIPPING USE?
IS YOUR STRIPPING PROCESS A WET OR DRY PROCESS?
HOW MUCH DISASSEMBLY SHOULD I DO PRIOR TO BRINGING IN MY VEHICLE FOR PAINT AND RUST REMOVAL?
WHAT IF I CAN’T OR DON’T WANT TO REMOVE EVERYTHING?
DOES YOUR BLASTING PROCESS REMOVE BONDO COMPLETELY?
DOES YOUR BLASTING PROCESS REMOVE RUST?
WHAT HAPPENS TO UNDER COATING AND SEAM SEALERS AND CAN YOU REMOVE THESE COMPLETELY?
HOW LONG DO I HAVE BEFORE THE BARE METAL NEEDS TO BE PRIMED?
SHOULD I DO MY BODY WORK BEFORE OR AFTER I BRING MY PROJECT TO YOU FOR STRIPPING?
PRIMING AND PAINTING
CAN I PUT BONDO DIRECTLY OVER THE EPOXY PRIMER YOU USE?
WHAT DO I NEED TO DO TO THE BARE METAL SURFACE BEFORE PRIMING?
WHAT DO I NEED TO DO TO THE PRIMED SURFACE BEFORE PUTTING ON ADDITIONAL PRIMER, PAINT, OR BONDO?
DOES THE EPOXY PRIMER THAT YOU USE HOLD UP TO THE ELEMENTS?
METAL SPRAY
HOW DOES THE METAL BEING SPRAYED ADHERE TO THE PARENT METAL IT IS SPRAYED ON?
CAN YOU POWDER COAT OVER THE SPRAYED METAL?
CAN YOU CHROME OVER THE SPRAYED METAL?
WHEN YOU METAL SPRAY TO FILL RUSTED OUT AREAS WILL I HAVE FURTHER WORK IN THESE AREAS TO DO?
HOW MUCH HEAT IS GENERATED ON THE PARENT METAL WITH THE METAL SPRAY PROCESS?
American Stripping Company’s main stay blasting media is a proprietary mineral. Unlike the multitude of minerals in sand our micro mineral blasting media is one specific natural occurring mineral that has superior cutting qualities when compared to other blasting options. Our micro mineral also has the ability to break down on contact creating more superior cutting edges, unlike the minerals in sand that round off or disintagrate on contact. This superior cutting quality enables us to use lower pressure. This lower pressure, coupled with a super fine grit size of 200-220, assures us of low heat generation to the surface, which means no warping or hardening of the metal surfaces.
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All blasting medias have their place! Most not on vehicles! Sand is too aggressive to the metal and generates too much heat, which can work harden, and warp or distort the metal. Chemical stripping is messy, doesn’t remove rust, is hard to completely neutralize, and doesn’t leave an etched profile to the metal for better adhesion of the primer. Baking Soda, Plastic media, Walnut shells, Corn Cobs, these medias don’t remove rust, cleanse the metal, or leave a light tooth or etched profile to the metal which aids in the adhesion of the primer coat.
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American Stripping Company’s micro mineral process is a dry process. Stripping processes that use water on the bare metal can and will promote rust, while chemical dipping can penetrate deeper into seamed, or meshing metal areas then the neutralizer solution can penetrate. This can leave the chemical stripper in these seamed areas not completely neutralized, laying in wait to attack your finished paint job creating an adhesion failure of the top coat.
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American Stripping Company does not dissemble your project. We will always recommend that prior to bringing your project in to American Stripping Company for stripping and or priming that you disassemble your project as far down as you are going to for your restoration or repainting project.
If you are repainting the exterior only then usually pulling the bumpers, emblems, moldings and whatever chrome such as the grill and windshield wipers is enough.
Other items dissembled by some might include tail light extensions, headlight bezels, valances, bumper fillers, and front fenders. If stripping of the door jambs is included then pull off striker plates at the door sills, inside door panels, the weather seals, and window and door handles. If adding the undersides of the hood and deck lid, those items also need to be removed from the vehicle, When a ground up, body off restoration is what your after then remove every thing and bring the project in completely dissembled. No glass, gauges, headliner, upholstery, or wiring should be left on the vehicle.
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We will protect anything that requires protecting prior to doing the job. Keep in mind that this would add a little to the overall cost of the job, and may limit the accessibility to some areas, potentially leaving these areas untouched.
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We can remove bondo completely or leave it in keeping the area as close to factory specs as possible depending on your preference.
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Yes. Our patented dry stripping process removes rust and leaves a lightly etched surface perfect for the anchoring of the primer.
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If you are planning to re undercoat the areas that are undercoated prior to stripping then normally we will hit those areas plenty hard enough to remove what is peeling or flaking. Any rust working underneath the undercoating will show itself and we will chase that rust until it is gone. Whatever undercoat is remaining will be tight, and doing it’s job correctly. It will be clean, and ready to reapply over what remains. If you are adamant about removing all the undercoating we can do that also at an additional cost. As far as seam sealers go, if failing we can remove them. If the seam sealer is tight and doing it’s job correctly it will be resistant to the blasting, and therefore will remain.
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Because of the low pressure and super fine micro mineral process we employ, metal that hasn’t been rusty before will not rust for quite some time if kept out of the elements and not touched with bare hands. Metal that has been rusty prior to stripping will re rust at a faster rate. This is because on previously rusted metals the pores of the metal are open making it more susceptible to the oxidation process. While on the other hand, our ultra fine micro mineral is so gentle to the surface of the metal that we don’t open the pores of the metal any more then a light surface etch which keeps the metal from oxidizing as quickly as a more aggressively blasted surface.
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After you receive the vehicle back from American Stripping Company is when you would want to do your body work. The stripping process can reveal areas that had gone undetected prior to stripping, and body work done prior to the stripping process would then need to be protected causing these protected areas to need to be feathered or evened out with the bare metal areas.
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American Stripping Company is the only facility in the industry that on every work order guarantees the customer that if we distort any area or over blast on anything that wasn’t to be stripped we will fix, or replace at our cost.
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All estimates are based on an one hundred ten dollars per hour billable rate at the time.
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Yes. Because we only use the very best epoxy primer/sealer as a first line of defense over the bare metal the manufacture specifies after a light scuffing you can apply bondo right over the epoxy without removing It, which keeps the epoxy coating protecting the bare metal surface from the elements.
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After using our micro mineral process your project will be cleansed, lightly etched, and free of impurities including rust. We recommend blowing the surface off with air as the only thing necessary to do prior to priming.
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No sanding is necessary to the surface prior to priming. Our stripping process will leave the metal with the perfect tooth or light etch for superior bonding of your primer of choice.
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After the epoxy primer is applied to the bare metal there is a forty eight hour window to apply your next coating without any further preparation. During this time frame a chemical bond will take place between the two coatings. After this forty eight hour window of chemical adhesion closes you will need to scuff the surface of the epoxy primer with a scotch bright pad, creating a mechanical bond prior to your next product being applied.
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The epoxy primer we put over the bare metal surface is the very best “first lines of defense” we can offer our customers. Saying that it is still considered a primer and needs to be top coated. Over time ultra violet rays, and moisture will break down the epoxy primer creating a failure. The very best advice we can give a person is keep your project dry ,indoors, and out of the elements.
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No vehicles! We only finish paint industrial projects, and sometimes trailers or car frames.
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Sooner the better is always preferred, but if you keep the epoxy primed items inside and out of the elements they will last indefinitely.
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Usually the epoxy priming works out to be about half of the stripping charge unless the order consists of multiple small pieces which drives the price up accordingly.
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Soft metals such as zinc, copper, and aluminum.
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The metal being sprayed bonds mechanically to the high/low profile which has been created by the blasting process to the parent substrate.
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Normally the price will be less then cutting out and replacing the metal. If it isn’t less expensive to metal spray an area then by all means cut out and replacing the metal would be the preferred method.
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Yes. Because zinc has a melting point of 689 degrees and most powder coating applications are done around 400 degrees there are no issues.
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Copper and aluminum can be chromed. Zinc needs to be plated first with copper, then nickel, and then chromed (triple plated), which is standard of the chroming industry as it relates to the higher end market of today’s restoration and show vehicles.
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After the metal spraying process American Stripping Company will rough out the area and get you close to factory specs leaving the final body work for you or your body man (person) to do.
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Even though the zinc melts at 689 degrees the metal when sprayed is atomized to a mist which can be controlled on the parent metal to about 100 degrees.
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We charge a rate of one hundred twenty-five dollars an hour from start of repair to finish of repair for this service.
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